Yet, Charles felt not the slightest panic. He didn't even summon his longsword, but instead lifted his hand and began to buff himself: "Theresa, block the center. Nidalee, take the right. Don't let a single giant spider through!"
As he gave his orders, he had already slapped an extended-duration Blur onto himself, his figure becoming shimmery and indistinct.
Next, four magic arrays for Eldritch Blast materialized above him, launching a beam of potent energy into the depths of the cavern, striking the leading bull-sized giant spider dead-on!
Even without "Hexblade's Curse," a standard Eldritch Blast struck with nearly double the force of a heavy crossbow. These spiders, no matter how monstrous, were only flesh and blood at their core—incapable of withstanding such power. With a dull, explosive thud, the energy beam blasted the spider's body to pieces!
The spider barely managed a last snap of its twin fangs before collapsing into a heap—no scream, no struggle.
But the death of one giant spider was not enough to break the rest; one could hardly call these low-IQ arthropods "terrified."
They charged forward at speed, fangs spread wide—then abruptly stopped. Their bodies trembled, and from each gaping maw, thick ribbons of milky, sticky spider-silk came shooting out!
Charles lifted his shield, reciting the incantation for Shield: "Shield!"
Buzz—
A transparent magical force field shimmered into existence, and when the spider-silk struck, it crumpled and dropped limply to the floor—no longer any threat.
Seeing this, Charles nodded in satisfaction.
It seems my strength is more than enough for mere overgrown animals.
The others handled themselves just as capably. When challenged by spider-silk, each girl revealed her own clever means.
Theresa, ever the brutal one, lobbed a few guiding bolts from a distance—each one smashing into a different giant spider in the central passage. Her targets barely had time to spit silk before being annihilated!
Nidalee, transforming into leopard form, dove forward even as webbing shot at her. With a deft twist, she found a gap in the web, slipped through, and pounced straight onto a nearby spider!
Only Andny fared less gracefully—standing near Nidalee, she was struck full-on by two ropes of webbing and was bound tight in the blink of an eye.
But then she unleashed her magical power, reaching out mentally to the spiders binding her. For all their size, they were still insects—lacking true self-awareness and easily subjugated by Andny's magic!
In mere moments, the first wave of spider attackers was neutralized.
Excellent, this kind of progress makes our odds look very good!
Seeing the overwhelmingly favorable situation, Charles couldn't help but feel optimistic. But the very next instant, a chill ran across his skin—every hair stood on end!
At that precise moment, his Shield spell faded. He didn't even have time to utter a new incantation before deadly danger crept forth in silence!
BANG—
A longsword smeared with virulent green toxin slashed at his neck, breaking through both his third-level Armor of Agathys and third-level False Life protections, striking directly at his throat!
Luckily, the defensive power of those spells was sufficient. The blow's force was already half-spent, and so the very last layer—Mage Armor—barely managed to stop the blade.
If not for that, this sword swing would have sent his head flying!
Crack—
The shattered Armor of Agathys erupted in a burst of bitter cold, freezing the black hand clutching the longsword. But it was hard to say how much harm such cold could do to one this powerful.
Charles whipped his head up. At last, he realized—the nest's final boss, the merciless Drider, had cloaked herself in invisibility and crept directly above his head, both hands gripping poison-coated magical longswords, awaiting the ideal moment for a sudden raid!
It was lucky he had cast Blur beforehand; the assailant hadn't been able to see the exact position of Charles's throat, so her second blade missed its mark. Otherwise, his head would already be off his shoulders!
All at once, he cursed inwardly.
Damn, wasn't this boss supposed to be at the end of the central passage, tormenting the captives?
Why would she raid me here, on the left-hand path?!
He had no answer, but this was not the moment for hesitation or complaining. Staring at the inverted Drider, Charles's mind rapidly summoned up her battle stats.
Ilthreza, originally a ninth-level Transmutation School Mage, transformed into a Drider, and then picked up dual-wielding skills as a warrior. With spider-silk powers, she could perform high-speed movement in tight spaces with negligible cost—a truly difficult foe!
Absolute solo combat was no option—he had to create distance!
Thinking fast, he retreated, raising his shield and attempting to blind her with a powerful Light spell, while his right hand summoned forth a magical longsword ablaze with fire!
The Elemental Weapon spell also lasted an hour. As such, he'd cast it before entering the cavern, and the effect was still active—he could summon the flaming magic sword directly.
But unfortunately, a dark elf's allergic reaction is to sunlight. The light of a simple cantrip like Light—even costing no spell slots—couldn't come near causing agony.
"Heh, paltry tricks!"
Hanging from the cavern ceiling, Ilthreza's pure white long hair cascaded down. Watching Charles's efforts, she issued a scornful taunt, then tensed her muscled, athletic abdomen, and in the next instant, a silk thread shot from her exposed, seductive navel.
Charles jerked his head aside to evade, but realized in the next second that the spider-silk wasn't aimed at him, but rather at the wall behind him!
"Die!"
With a snarl, Ilthreza's eight spider legs thrust with explosive force, using the silken strand to catapult her body at extreme speed down at Charles!
He had no choice but to block with his shield, calling upon the Shield spell a second time that evening: "Shield!"
Buzz—
Midair, Ilthreza twisted her waist, spinning her body, both poison-coated magic longswords twirling toward Charles's head like a deadly windmill!
Crash!
Leaning on that tremendous momentum, Ilthreza's blades easily broke through Shield, slicing through Mage Armor, his garments, and even into his flesh!
"Well—!"
The pain in his shoulder ripped a cry from Charles, his brow knitting tightly. The wound wasn't deep, but he could clearly feel the venom from Ilthreza's sword seeping into his body through the cut!
With the potency of drow poison, just this much would already be fatal!
Wait—am I not immune to toxins?
Ah, that's right. Then there's nothing to worry about.
Without bothering about his bleeding shoulder, Charles planted his feet, turned, and now confronted Ilthreza, who had landed behind him.
At that moment, the Drider was silently frustrated herself. The previous strike had been nearly all her might; if not for Shield's defense, she could have severed Charles's entire arm!
However, she still had more chances. Unlike those mindless giant spiders that could store only a single shot of spider-silk at a time, she—realizing this trick's practical value—had already filled her abdomen with the opaque liquid needed to spin silk. Even after just firing one strand, she remained perfectly capable of launching another fierce, lethal assault!
"Next time, it'll be your death!"
She wasted no time. As soon as she hit the ground, her eight legs propelled her back up to the ceiling, where she shot another silk thread from her navel, aiming straight at the stone wall behind Charles!
Charles swiftly dodged the silk, raising his shield with his left arm, gripping his longsword in his right, ready to counterattack in combination with his shield should she charge—
Whoosh—
Ilthreza didn't hesitate: spinning again as she charged, her shining blades reflecting deadly light. Charles steeled himself, reciting Shield for the third time that evening, and leapt forward, meeting her head-on with two slashes—
Clang—
He and this woman's swords clashed—leaving not a scratch on her. In return, her blade struck yet again, slicing through his Mage Armor and clothing, leaving a fresh gash on his back!
"Ugh!"
Charles grunted, staggering forward a few steps, feeling the burn in his back, jaw clenched.
Good thing I'm immune to toxins, or these tiny wounds would be mortal.
Even so, he realized something else:
I can't beat her.
Gazing at Ilthreza—hanging upside down on a distant wall, face twisted into a mocking smile, eight legs tucked and primed for her third attack—Charles couldn't help but sigh inwardly: As expected, this foe's strength far exceeds mine. With my current equipment and skills, I have no chance of beating her.
If that's the case, then...
"Theresa," he ordered, "eliminate her!"
Behind him, Theresa—who had watched him gain battlefield experience and hadn't acted without his command—finally stepped forward and raised her hand: "Dawn!"
A disk, radiant as the sun, blossomed around her right hand.
Dawn! A fifth-level School of Evocation spell, requiring seven spell slots to cast. Its effect: filling almost the entire cavern with intensely damaging sunlight!
Theresa excelled in all spells tied to light. At this moment, she flooded all the light toward Ilthreza's eyes!
Dark elves excel in many ways—strong, ruthless, cunning, and disciplined. As individuals, they are even stronger than any of their elven cousins. But such power comes with a fatal weakness.
They are mortally afraid of sunlight!
"Aaaaaaah—!"
Blasted by searing daylight, stabbing pain pierced Ilthreza's mind, tearing a shriek from her throat. She clamped her eyes shut, tears streaming down her face. Yet the agony didn't abate—instead, it seared deeper into her mind, nearly forcing her to drop her sword!
"You have chosen your own doom."
Watching the immobilized Ilthreza, Theresa let out a cold, mocking laugh. She had no need to do anything else—by simply maintaining the sunlight of "Dawn," the spell's damage alone was enough to burn Ilthreza alive!
This was the absolute difference in strength. After all, a sun-fearing dark elf facing the most light-attuned witch was like a centipede meeting a rooster—utterly, helplessly countered!
This can't be—I can't defeat her!
If it continues like this, I'll die!
Such thoughts surged in Ilthreza's mind as well, and in her desperation, she realized:
I must escape!
Disrupt the battlefield!
"MoveEarth!"
She chanted a string of arcane syllables. As she finished, the entire mine began to tremble and shake!
Move Earth: a sixth-level School of Transmutation spell—able to unleash violent tremors in an area, even cause local collapses and cave-ins.
Though less devastating than "Earthquake," in a complex, layered mine such as this, its effects can rival those of "Earthquake" in scale!
Just like now—in these stacked mine shafts, Move Earth caused not just fragmenting ceilings, but cave-ins underfoot.
Boom—
"What the—!"
A huge crack ripped open beneath Charles's feet, and in the flickering light, he saw yet another mine level below.
He stumbled, nearly falling straight through. He grabbed for the nearest wall—only for it to begin shaking as well, clumps of dirt and rock raining down and bouncing off his head!
"Damn it!"
He cursed inwardly. Amid the fierce quake, he could no longer keep his balance and fell, tumbling down to the deeper level!
"Master!"
Theresa called, darting forward to try and grab his arm, but she was a heartbeat too slow. She could only watch as he plunged down, rocks and debris blocking the path below!
Boom—
That localized collapse triggered a far larger cave-in: distant rocks crumbled and fell as escape routes were buried!
Yet at the same time, some new passages were opened, the result of the collapse...
"Hahahaha—!"
Ilthreza's laughter echoed wildly. The falling stones now blocked Theresa's spell-light, letting the Drider recover enough vision to open her eyes. She spun around, shot spider-silk from her navel, and used it to swing herself away at speed!
"You wretched fiend!"
Theresa swore. Torn between desire to chase down and destroy Ilthreza and worry for Charles's safety, she hesitated.
Just then, a mosquito hovered by her ear and spoke: "Eldest sister, Master says he's fine—and wants you to hunt down and kill the Drider immediately. She must not be allowed to escape!"
"Master is fine?"
Upon hearing this, Theresa let out a breath of relief. She turned back and found that fallen rocks had also separated her from Andny.
Immediately, her face turned anxious. "Are you alright? Can you still move?"
"I'm fine. I was farther back, just trapped by blocked passages," Andny replied. "But I still control a few giant spiders and a host of vampire bats. As long as I avoid the Drider, I should be safe."
"Is Nidalee with you?" Theresa asked next.
"She fell too, but the gap above isn't blocked—I can reach her."
"Then you go down a level and find Master; I'll pursue the Drider, agreed?"
"I'll check with Master… He says not to worry about his safety, and prefers Nidalee and I focus on finding Anno first."
"Then send a few vampire bats to locate Master, scout a safe passage, and you and Nidalee can go find Anno, alright?"
"Alright... Master agrees."
"Then it's settled!"
Relaxed at last, Theresa drew a deep breath, her gaze locking on the direction of Ilthreza's escape, eyes ablaze with righteous fury.
Unforgivable!
Very well, you'll pay for all of this—with your life!
So thinking, her form, too, blurred and flickered, leaping more than twenty meters per flash, racing after Ilthreza.
Meanwhile, in the third level of the mine below.
"Damn—"
Having some survival experience, Charles managed to roll on landing, tumbling far across the floor. Stones still fell from above, the floor was hard beneath him, but at least he was spared any major wounds—his existing cuts had not worsened.
Once he stopped, he was covered head-to-toe with dirt and dust, resembling a man made of mud.
Once safe, he cursed instinctively.
How has Ilthreza mastered sixth-level spells already?!
Are eleventh-level spellcasters so common these days?
He didn't know. He cursed the unreliable boss info from the game. But, in fact, it was quite logical; game bosses and monsters are always scripted for drama.
Just like the aged Zenith: battle-seasoned yet with a body past its prime, no way a true CR 6 force.
Or this Drider Ilthreza—a magical prodigy among elves, breaking her shackles, mastering 6th-level spells at eleventh level, all perfectly believable.
But there's no use complaining now. All he could do was focus on saving himself.
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